The subject matter disclosed herein relates to wind turbines and, more specifically, to wind turbines and wind turbine rotor blades with reduced radar cross sections.
Wind power can be considered one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly energy sources presently available, and wind turbines have gained increased attention in this regard. A wind turbine can include a tower, generator, gearbox, nacelle, and one or more rotor blades comprising a composite material. The rotor blades capture kinetic energy from wind using known foil principles and transmit the kinetic energy through rotational energy to turn a shaft coupling the rotor blades to a gearbox, or if a gearbox is not used, directly to the generator. The generator then converts the mechanical energy to electrical energy that may be deployed to a utility grid.
Wind turbines can thus be placed in a variety of locations to effectively help capture the energy of wind power where present. These locations can include both on-shore and off-shore locations and may potentially be located in a wide variety of different topographical and geological positions. However, some position-based restrictions may inhibit the feasibility of placing wind turbines and certain locations. For example, radar stations and the like, such as those used at many airports, utilize open areas to capture radar feedback over great distances to monitor various activities such as air traffic. Placing wind turbines near such radar stations may result in consistent or occasional radar feedback due to the radar cross section of one or more components of the wind turbines and thereby impede the monitoring of space on the opposite side of such wind turbines.
Accordingly, alternative wind turbines and wind turbine rotor blades with reduced radar cross section would be welcome in the art.